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“You mean to tell me you didn’t even get the bundle we
sent via ‘special means’ here?!” the Head Stork gasps, blinking
nearsightedly at the Doctor.
“Old chap if it wasn’t for the fact that my adopted daughter
stumbled across him in the dank dark bloody caverns on another
world I and my wife would NEVER had KNOWN of his existence,” the Doctor
says in a calm but condescending voice.
No, the Timelord turned Champion is less than pleased here, but as the
stork explains . . .his anger is soon directed at the actual author (or
Author) responsible for this cock up!
It was that damnable Game 3 Author who’d initiated this Challenge from
the get go! His meddling according to what the Doctor can figure out
from what the Stork told him had extended all OVER the place, including
Xanth.
Just how far reaching was this malignant piece of work’s power? The
Doctor knew that Authors were supposed to be godlike but this business was
interfering with Champions lives. Didn’t the Rules and Agents make it
their business to intervene against such meddling?
As it turns out they did, but we get ahead of ourselves here.
The Head Stork himself had traveled to this far off world to again
deliver (this time in person) his sincerest apology for this unbelievable
snafu his department had made. Already distraught at what he saw as a
series of unbelievable (and unforgivable) blunders, this had happened!
And to now add to it one of his own had not only misbeliever their bundle
of joy but . . .died in the line of duty.
Needless to say that the Doctor, no longer angry with the Stork, did
his best to calm the feathery fellow. And then did his best to make sure
his wife (who was all smiles and calmness in demeanor) didn’t slay the
stork were he stood for his transgressions.
No, the Timelord turned Champion was well aware of his wife’s moods,
and this mood she was in was decidedly bloody minded indeed. It was
justified, but it was just misdirected at the wrong person.
And in the middle of it all . . .the Validation Quest for Lilith and
Reika Quatermain . . . Ended.
The G-man looked around at the control center for the Iconian gateway
outpost and nods slightly. Most satisfactory.
Oh, granted having to deal with that puffed up pajama clad buffoon who
claimed to be the captain of the Enterprise (the NCC-1701D of all things)
and his android henchman had been . . . Most trying. He was glad that
with just a flick of a switch both had been neatly deposited back aboard
their ship, safe and sound.
AFTER he’d called up there and told them how to avoid their ship from
destroying itself. It had been unlucky enough to get it's computer
network infected by Iconian computer viruses, blast it! The G-man was
hard but not THAT heartless.
Switching on certain defenses made sure nobody unwelcome would be
beaming back down to interfere with his tasks the G-man got down to
actually learning the ins and outs of his new found powers. That
and he needed to contact his hired henchmen back on “his” Earth.
Track down and contact his handlers, his fellow Krell. There still was
the Great Machine to permanently destroy before something MORE foolish was
done with it by those humans left behind there. Such power was not for
the likes of them. Hell, it had not really been for the likes of HIS
kind. Still something of a bitter pill to swallow for his race but they’d
learned it. Those who’d survived that dark night of fire and madness...
It was ironic that with each Krell mind who died, their creations died
with them? Each building crafted. Each work of art . . .all but for a
handful of things had been done (and or redone) by utilizing the Great
Machine at a lower man/machine interface setting. At it’s ultimate
setting? When the Krell on the other end died? Well, default protocols
erased the materials, setting it back to a default setting to await the
next user to mold it back into whatever desired. The default, of course,
being vast plots of barren land . . .which had become overgrown with
wildlife and flora which escaped the destruction of that day.
It had taken only a handful of years, the last.
“Poor Dr. Morbius . . .you really thought that our towers of adamantium
steel and alabaster fell only after centuries of neglect?” the G-man
chuckled soflty to himself, annoyed still at the man’s . . .naivety. “It
had pretty much disappeared with everything else that dark night, dear
doctor.”
He then frowned, remembering the dismissive manner Morbius had used
when the G-man had querried him about any mention of his particular
caste. The human had sniffed, saying that such throwback surely should
not have survived in such a society that had reached such heights. Oddly
enough, it had been those throwbacks who’d only survived . . .and been
very correct about the dangers the Great Machine had posed.
Turning again, the G-man looked at the spot were his travel companions
had stood only moments ago. Vanishing back to wherever they’d come from
after that brief meeting all had with those Celestrials: the Rule and
Agent.
Most . . .amazing. And educational.
So they did all of what they had done because of that causality
loop, the G-man thought to himself.
That part about how Timelords learning of their own future (and thus
finding it then almost impossible to avoid) had been . . .fascinating.
And annoying.
No real trust there with him. Then again, the G-man had to admit to
himself he’d not really trusted them either so it all evened out.
It had sounded somewhat ominous to hear that the Rule wished to speak
with him after he’d gained full control of this machinery but . . .he
could live with that. He would pay any price. Do anything in service for
his people against those who’d lay them low and . . .service to a Rule or
Agent was a small price to pay.
And . . .that was probably another reason why the Champions finally
helped him. The very same Rule and Agent would keep him from getting TOO
out of hand.
He planned on making certain other Gendo Akaris had their lives
turned into a living hell here sooner or later. The G-man had managed to
find certain . . .features in this Iconian machinery that had made it
possible to track down (and spy upon) that fell man who haled from Rei-
chan’s home reality. Gendo was furious over the loss of Rei-chan.
However, soon enough Gendo (and SEELE while at it) but soon would be
begging for death from the G-man for their treason against their own race!!
A hard man the G-,man was, but did not abide the thought of such
treachery in others...there were some things even HE would not tolerate.
The G-man would do that all, after of course making sure that
Third Impact/Instrumentality didn’t happen. A few pointers here and there
for fighting Angels and then perhaps a little bit of help for space travel
would do wonders! Mankind finally getting free (at least to start to
explore and colonize it’s own solar system) would do wonders in warding of
genetic imperatives...
“If nothing else . . .the forcefield or whatever they’ll eventually
call that AT field and those N2 mines will be the basis for a workable
Orion Drive,” the Krell/human hybrid mused.
http://en .wikip edia.o rg/wi ki/Orion _drive
N2 mines were as powerful as regular nuclear bombs, but without the
nasty fallout and such.
An AT field would serve as the perfect “push plate” a working Orion
drive driven ship would need...
“Ssso many things to attend to,” the G-man sighed. “No rest for the
weary...”
And thus we end this book and open a new page in a new book. Rei-chan
and Junior eventually get new names and grow into fine and outstanding
citizens of Terra Prime. Even marry and have kids (Rei-chan marrying a
Champion of her own and getting inducted that way), but thats a different
tale.
Both Akagis learn the ways of magery from Sigin after he offered and
Rei had opted out, deferring to her old teacher in teaching.
The dragon mage was a VERY good instructor, you know! Was able to
teach even the most arcane and exotic of topics enough to where those
otherwise beyond the pale were able to learn the basics. Look at
what he’d managed with two 19th century humans turned dragaons with FTL
concepts...
Another tale for another time.
Instread, let us continue on and watch the tale of the three sisters who
used to call themselves “Rei Ayanami”.
-
 A funny thing happened to them on their way to a a space station called Babylon 5...
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